Nicolás Maduro rejects ultimatum on fresh elections in Venezuela

Crisis-hit country’s president under pressure as US urges the world to ‘pick a side’

Venezuela’s embattled president, Nicolás Maduro, has rebuffed calls from the international community to hold elections within eight days, protracting a diplomatic crisis that shows little respite.

In a wide-ranging interview with CNN Türk that aired on Monday, Maduro accused the opposition leader, Juan Guaidó, of violating “the constitution and every law”. Guaidó, the leader of the opposition-held national assembly, declared himself interim president on Wednesday as hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans took to the streets to protest against Maduro’s rule.